AIS, DTAC oppose lower cap on mobile call charges
Advanced Info Service (AIS) and Total Access Communication (DTAC) have expressed opposition to the national regulator's plan to cap the tariffs that cellular operators can charge for mobile-phone calls at 99 satang per minute - and the fact that it will a
Sutipol Taweechaikarn, a member of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), said yesterday that AIS and DTAC had made separate, informal comments on the plan to the watchdog’s telecom committee recently.
Both firms oppose a tariff cap, believing the watchdog should allow all cellular operators to compete freely regarding call fees, he said.
The firms want the NBTC to change the planned maximum rate of 99 satang per minute to an average rate of 99 satang per minute.
In addition, the firms want the rate applied to all cellular operators, not only AIS and DTAC.
The NBTC’s telecom committee disclosed last week its plan to introduce the new maximum mobile call tariff of 99 satang per minute to make operators lower their rates – especially those charged for the first minute of a call. In some promotional packages, operators charge customers Bt2 per minute during the first minute and then a lower rate – for example, 50 satang per minute – for subsequent minutes.
Operators that will be required to adopt the new rate are those defined by the NBTC as Significant Market Players (SMPs) – that is, ones with market shares above 25 per cent. Both AIS and DTAC were classified as SMPs last year.
AIS and DTAC had respective market shares of 43 per cent and 30 per cent last year, according to the regulator’s study.
TrueMove last year had a share of around 24 per cent. Once its market share exceeds 25 per cent, it too will become an SMP and have to adopt the new maximum call tariff.
Sutipol said the NBTC’s telecom committee would discuss the planned tariff changes again next week.
The present maximum tariffs, introduced by the Cabinet in 2006, are Bt3, Bt8 and Bt12 per minute, depending on the call distance.
According to the NBTC study, the average call fee of DTAC during the first nine months of last year was 76 satang per minute, followed by TrueMove at 67 satang and AIS at 54 satang.
